KR101933225B1 - Ventilation gas management systems and processes - Google Patents

Abstract

To a ventilation gas management system and process for an enclosure that includes a fluid supply container (s) and through which ventilation gas is perfused to provide safe operation upon occurrence of fluid leakage from the container. The ventilation gas flow may be adjusted to accommodate various levels of risk associated with the placement and operation of such enclosures, including fluid supply container (s), such as gas boxes or gas cabinets, in semiconductor manufacturing facilities, The required ventilation gas requirements can be reduced.

Description

[0001] VENTILATION GAS MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS AND PROCESSES [0002]

This application claims the benefit of priority of U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 61 / 295,150, filed on January 14, 2010, in the name of Ollender W. Carl and Marginski Paul J. for "Ventilation Gas Management System and Process". Thus the entire disclosure of the above-mentioned U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 61 / 295,150 is hereby incorporated by reference.

The present invention generally relates to a ventilation gas management system and process. In various embodiments, the present invention is more specifically directed to a gas box including a fluid supply container and a discharge system used to vent the gas cabinet and a semiconductor manufacturing facility and process utilizing the same.

When using adsorber-based fluid storage and dispensing vessels of the type commercially available under the trade designation "SDS" by ATMI, Inc. of Danbury, Conn., The fluid is stored in the physical adsorbent in the waste vessel and desorbed under dispensing conditions Fluid is supplied for use. The dispensing conditions may include a pressure difference between the interior space within the container and the dispensing line connected to the valve head of the container, the input of heat to the adsorbent in the container, the flow of carrier gas through the container, or more than one such dispensing mode, The fluid is desorbed for discharge from the vessel. As a result of the fluid being stored in the adsorbed state, the fluid pressure in the storage and dispensing vessel can be kept very low, e.g. below atmospheric pressure.

As a result of this low pressure storage, the sorbent-based vessel has substantially improved safety compared to conventional high pressure fluid supply cylinders (which can contain fluids at pressures much higher than atmospheric, for example, at pressures of the order of 800 to 2000 psig). These high-pressure cylinders are extremely dangerous when the cylinder leaks. Since the fluid in the high-pressure cylinder is at a considerably higher pressure than the ambient environment of the cylinder, such rupture or leakage occurs, and all the fluid residual amount can be rapidly dispersed into the surrounding environment of the cylinder.

In contrast, when leaks occur in the sorbent-based fluid storage and dispensing vessel, this dispersion into the environment is minimized due to the low fluid storage pressure. Furthermore, if the storage pressure is lower than the atmospheric pressure, there will be a net inflow of ambient gas into the vessel. This net inflow serves to dilute the contents of the vessel and further reduce the risk of danger near the vessel and thus to release toxic or dangerous fluids at a level higher than the threshold limit characteristic of leaks associated with the high pressure fluid supply cylinder Can be avoided.

In view of substantially improved safety, sorbent-based fluid storage and dispensing vessels are widely used where toxic or hazardous fluids, such as in the semiconductor manufacturing industry, must be dispersed in fluid utilization processes and equipment.

In semiconductor manufacturing, such sorbent-based fluid storage and dispensing vessels can be used in a variety of manufacturing operations, including chemical vapor deposition, etching, ion implantation, atomic layer deposition, purification, and the like.

At the time of ion implantation, sorbent-based fluid storage and dispensing vessels are particularly popular, wherein the dopant gas for implantation is stored at a pressure lower than atmospheric pressure and is distributed to the ion source for the generation of the separated ionic species, So as to form an ion beam.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION [0003] In the semiconductor manufacturing industry, internally pressure controlled fluid supply vessels are also widely used as a safe alternative to conventional high pressure gas cylinders. Internally pressure controlled such fluid supply vessels are commercially available from ATMI, Inc. (Danbury, Conn.) Under the trade name VAC and utilize one or more regulating devices within the interior space of the fluid supply container. The regulating device used in such a fluid supply container has a pressure set point at which a desired distribution pressure of the fluid discharged from the supply container, e.g., a distribution pressure lower than the atmospheric pressure, or a low superatom pressure distribution pressure, is provided.

It is common practice in the semiconductor manufacturing operations to place the fluid supply container in an enclosure such as a gas cabinet or gas box. These enclosures provide a closed interior space through which the fluid storage and dispensing vessel (s) can be installed for use. Dispensing vessels in the enclosure are connected to such flow circuitry to selectively drain fluid from a particular vessel to the flow line of the flow circuit. The flow circuit in the enclosure is connected to a flow circuit (including fluid lines, conduits, manifolds, etc.) outside the enclosure where fluid is delivered to the downstream point of use by the flow circuitry outside the enclosure. The flow circuit in the gas cabinet and the flow circuitry outside the cabinet can vary in characteristics and can be controlled by a flow control valve, a regulator, a mass flow controller, an electronic pressure sensor, a pressure transducer, a heat tracing member, a restricted flow orifice, , Fluid reservoir and distribution in a purifier, overpressure relief device, manifold, mixing device, valve manifold box, snubber, thermocouple, side stream sampling structure, rotameter, liquid manometer, component sensor and enclosure And a fluid flow path including other components used in a particular flow device for delivering fluid from the container to a point of use.

Fluid container enclosures, such as gas cabinets or gas boxes, are typically vented to a venting gas (e.g., air) that is passing through the enclosure, so that fluid leaking from the fluid storage and dispensing vessel is swept away along with the flow of venting gas. The final ventilation gas effluent, including the leaking fluid component, is sent to a scrubber or other processing unit to reduce toxic or hazardous components in the vent gas and the treated vent gas can be vented into the atmosphere or for other processing or use have.

The ventilation gas used in the ventilation of the gas box and the other enclosure containing the fluid supply container in the semiconductor manufacturing facility is generally in the range of 300 to 300 mm, considering the containment of the worst emission (WCR) due to leakage of gas from the high- 500 ft. ³ / min flow rate through the enclosure.

Typically, the gas box is provided with a permanent opening that allows sweep air to flow into the gas box at a controlled flow rate and an access port that can be selectively opened for system maintenance and / or replacement of the fluid dispense vessel The door is constructed. The flow rate of the ventilation gas passing through the gas box in the semiconductor manufacturing facility is generally determined by the duct diameter of the duct used to draw out the ventilation gas flow given to the gas box to exhaust the gas box and the duct diameter of the ventilation / It follows the static pressure. The exhaust duct may be provided with a damper, or the door of the gas box may be provided with a louver, which is used to provide a specific air flow through the gas box.

The current gas box ventilation practices are specified in section 3704.1.2 of the International Fire Regulations, which means that the average surface velocity in the gas cabinet access port or window plane can not be less than 200 ft / min and the access port or window The minimum speed is 150 ft / min. Similar standards have been promulgated by the Organization for Semiconductor Equipment Manufacturers International (SEMI) for ventilation practices.

Such regulation may allow for sufficient air intake when the access door of the enclosure is opened to trap toxic or hazardous species that may or may be present during that time, for example, exposing the operator exposure to toxic gases to 1 / 4 or less. Compliance with these regulations is particularly important when the fluid dispensed into the gas box has spontaneous ignition properties, such as silane. In this case, it is desirable to infuse the ventilation gas into the gas box in an amount sufficient to dilute the spontaneously flammable fluid to a safe concentration, for example, a concentration of 1/4 of its lower explosive limit (LEL) or lower limit of flammability (LFL).

The art continues to improve the safety and economics associated with the use of gas in fluid utilization facilities such as semiconductor manufacturing facilities (using fluid storage dispensing vessels to provide fluid to fluid utilization units such as vapor deposition chambers and ion implantation equipment) have.

The present invention is directed to a process facility in which ventilation gas flows through an enclosure containing fluid supply container (s) and associated flow circuitry to ensure safe operation in connection with fluid leakage from fluid supply container (s) and / And more particularly, to a system and a process for managing the ventilation gas of the air conditioner.

In one aspect, the present invention is directed to a ventilation gas management system for an enclosure, the enclosure including a fluid supply container and a flow circuit connected to the fluid supply container and configured to flow the ventilation gas through the enclosure,

Such a ventilation gas management system,

A flow regulator for controlling the ventilation gas flow through the enclosure;

(I) the characteristics of the fluid supply container, the characteristics of the enclosure, or the fluid in the fluid supply container or dispense from the fluid supply container, which affects the level of hazard or risk associated with fluid leakage from the fluid supply container or associated flow circuit within the enclosure (Ii) a monitoring assembly for outputting a monitoring signal correlated with the monitored characteristic; And

And a controller arranged to receive monitoring signals from the monitoring assembly and responsively adjust the flow regulator in relation to the level of hazards or hazards associated with fluid leakage from the fluid supply vessel in the enclosure.

In another aspect, the present invention relates to a method of supplying gas from a fluid supply in an enclosure through which a vent gas flows, the method comprising the steps of: providing a gas supply to a fluid supply in the enclosure; Monitoring the characteristics of the influencing fluid supply, the characteristics of the enclosure, or the characteristics of the fluid in the fluid supply or the fluid supply from the fluid supply; and in response to the monitoring, the fluid leakage from the fluid supply in the enclosure And controlling the flow of ventilation gas through the enclosure with respect to the level of hazard or danger.

In another aspect, the present invention is directed to a method of managing operation of an effluent streaming through a process unit, the method comprising: monitoring at least one condition or operating parameter of a process unit determining a risk or hazard level; Responsive to a risk or hazard level determined from the monitored condition (s) or operational parameter (s), to the one of the plurality of alternative emission processing units.

Other aspects, features, and embodiments of the present invention will become more fully apparent from the following disclosure and appended claims.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS Figure 1 schematically depicts a gas cabinet comprising an adsorbent-based fluid supply vessel and adapted to regulate the flow of ventilation gas according to the fluid level in the fluid supply vessel.
Figure 2 schematically illustrates a semiconductor manufacturing process facility that requires the use of air emissions for operation, wherein the ventilation of the gas box and injector enclosure is controlled according to the process conditions therein.
Figure 3 schematically shows a gas cabinet comprising a plurality of adsorbent-based fluid supply vessels through which ventilation gases are allowed to pass.
Figure 4 schematically depicts a fluid supply system including a gas cabinet containing a plurality of adsorbent based fluid supply vessels, wherein the gas cabinet is divided to provide a sub enclosure for each fluid supply vessel.

The present invention relates to a ventilation gas management system and process, and more particularly, to a ventilation gas management system for an enclosure containing fluid storage / dispensing vessels and a process for such ventilation gas management.

In one embodiment, the present invention contemplates a ventilation gas management system for an enclosure comprising a fluid supply vessel and a flow circuit connected thereto and configured to flow ventilation gas through the enclosure, wherein the ventilation gas The management system comprises: (a) a flow regulator that controls ventilation gas flow through the enclosure; (b) a flow regulator that (i) affects the level of hazard or risk associated with fluid leakage from the fluid supply container or associated flow circuitry within the enclosure A monitoring assembly that monitors the characteristics of the fluid supply vessel, the characteristics of the enclosure, or the characteristics of the fluid in the fluid supply vessel or the fluid dispensed therefrom, and (ii) a monitoring signal that is correlated with the monitored characteristics, and c) receiving a monitoring signal from the monitoring assembly, With regard to harmful or level of risk associated with the fluid leakage from the fluid supply vessel comprises a controller arranged to adjust the flow controller to responsively.

The properties monitored in such a system may be of any suitable type, such as the amount of fluid remaining in the fluid supply vessel; Fluid pressure in the fluid supply vessel; The fluid pressure in the gas delivery manifold downstream of the fluid supply vessel; Strain at the wall of the fluid supply vessel; The weight of the fluid supply container comprising the fluid; The physical adsorption characteristics of the physical adsorbent disposed in the inner space of the fluid supply vessel; The temperature of the fluid supply vessel; Temperature in the enclosure; A cumulative volume of fluid dispensed from the fluid supply vessel; A fluid dispense period from the fluid supply vessel; The velocity of the fluid dispensed from the fluid supply vessel; Ambient conditions within the enclosure; Fluid conditions in the fluid supply vessel; Opening and Closing Characteristics of Approach Structure of Enclosure; And at least one property selected from the group consisting of fluid supply vessels, flow circuits, enclosure and / or alarm conditions associated with the process of consuming the fluid being dispensed.

In one embodiment, the monitoring assembly includes a strain gauge mounted on the outer wall of the fluid supply vessel, which outputs a corresponding signal indicative of the strain of the vessel wall as a monitoring signal. In another embodiment, the monitoring assembly includes a pressure transducer adapted to monitor the pressure of the fluid dispensed in the fluid supply vessel.

The flow regulator may be of any suitable type, such as, for example, a flow control valve, a damper, variable-size restricted flow orifice devices, a mass flow controller, a variable speed pump and a variable speed blower And a flow control device.

The monitoring assembly may include any of a variety of specific device elements, for example, a data acquisition module disposed outside the enclosure, operatively coupled to at least one sensor within the enclosure do.

In one embodiment, the characteristics of the fluid supply container used for monitoring, the characteristics of the enclosure, or the properties of the fluid that is in or out of the fluid supply container include the opening and closing characteristics of the access structure of the enclosure. In other embodiments, such characteristics may include alarm conditions associated with fluid supply vessels, flow circuits, and / or enclosures.

The controller may be configured to responsively adjust the flow regulator to increase the flow of vent gas through the enclosure when the access structure of the enclosure is open. Alternatively, the controller reduces the flow of ventilation gas through the enclosure to a low " normal level " when dispensing fluid from the fluid supply under non-alarm conditions and the closure characteristics of the approach structure of the enclosure, May be configured to increase the flow of ventilation gas through the enclosure when an alarm condition associated with the circuit and / or the enclosure occurs or when the enclosure's access structure is open.

In another embodiment, the controller responsively adjusts the flow regulator in the absence of an alarm or emergency condition, such that the flow of ventilation gas through the enclosure during fluid distribution in the fluid supply vessel is reduced by, for example, 25-80 ft. ³ / min. ≪ / RTI >

In another configuration, the controller may responsively adjust the flow regulator to reduce the flow of vent gas through the enclosure during fluid dispensing from the fluid supply container, so that the vent gas flow through the enclosure is < RTI ID = 0.0 & And gradually decreases as the fluid level decreases.

The controller itself may be or comprise a computing device selected from the group consisting of a microprocessor, a programmable logic controller, and a computer capable of being programmed for adjustment of the flow conditioner in response to the monitoring signal.

The ventilation gas management system described above is operably disposed in a gas cabinet in a semiconductor manufacturing facility and includes a gas cabinet such as a gas cabinet including an adsorbent based fluid supply vessel, a fluid supply vessel that is internally pressure regulated, It is possible to control the flow of the ventilation gas through a plurality of fluid supply vessels of this kind or of a plurality of different kinds of fluid supply vessels. Alternatively, the ventilation gas management system described above may be operatively disposed with a gas box in a semiconductor manufacturing facility to control the flow of ventilation gas through the gas box.

In the case where the fluid supply container (s) comprises an adsorbent based fluid supply container, such a container may comprise an activated carbon adsorbent as the adsorbent therein.

The fluid may be stored or dispensed within the fluid supply vessel at any suitable pressure, such as subatmospheric or subatmospheric pressure, or low superatmospheric pressure.

The fluid may be of any kind, including, for example, semiconductor manufacturing fluids. The fluid may include, but is not limited to, a hydride gas, a halide gas, a gaseous organometallic compound, silane, diborane, germane, ammonia, hydrogen fluoride, hydrogen selenide, stibine, hydrogen sulphide, A fluid selected from the group consisting of hydrogen, boron trifluoride, B ₂ F ₄ , tungsten hexafluoride, chlorine, hydrogen chloride, hydrogen bromide, hydrogen iodide, and hydrogen fluoride.

Thus, the present invention contemplates a method of delivering gas from a fluid supply in a enclosure through which a ventilation gas flows, the method comprising: influencing a level of hazard or risk associated with fluid leakage from a fluid supply or an associated flow circuit in the enclosure Monitoring the characteristics of the fluid supply, the characteristics of the enclosure, or the characteristics of the fluid in the fluid supply or the fluid dispensed therefrom; and in response to the monitoring, And controlling the flow of ventilation gas through the enclosure with respect to the level of risk.

This method may be carried out in various different features, components, embodiments and arrangements as variously described in its specific embodiments.

Therefore, the present invention provides a " smart " enclosure, such as a gas box, that includes a fluid supply container and is provided with a ventilation system and associated controller that allows the enclosure to operate in an efficient and economical manner with variable venting.

In one embodiment, the enclosure includes a containment in a semiconductor fabrication facility that utilizes an exhaust system for venting of the containment, the exhaust system having a high flow, e.g., 300 to 40O ft. ³ / min ventilation flow rate, which is characterized by the operation of the containment during maintenance in the event of an emergency or when the enclosure is open for maintenance, inspection, etc., and also when the enclosure is operating and operational problems The exhaust system can be operated with low flow, e.g., 20 to 100 ft. Lt; RTI ID = 0.0 > ³ / min. ≪ / RTI > The low flow operating area thus constitutes the efficiency mode as the default state for the enclosure. The enclosure may be a gas box, a gas cabinet or other enclosure including the fluid supply container (s). The low flow operating area may be set to a predetermined ratio, for example, for a high flow operating area. For example, the low flow operating area may include operation in a flow range that includes a flow rate that is 15% to 25% of the flow rate in the high flow operating area.

Semiconductor manufacturing facilities can use variable speed fans for the exhaust system, which can be easily adjusted to transitions between a high flow operating area and a low flow operating area as the pressure in the plant changes. In this way, a lower discharge rate can be obtained as a whole.

In various embodiments of a ventilation gas management system, the enclosure includes a fluid supply vessel that is internally pressure regulated. When one or more such devices are used, the device is arranged in series so as to obtain a specified pressure level of the fluid to be dispensed, and the pressure regulator setpoint is determined by the desired distribution The operation is set to be performed. This particular pressure level may include a subatmospheric pressure of the fluid being dispensed, or alternatively, a fluid pressure level that is relatively low in nature, e.g., 100 kPa or less.

Thus, during normal operation, the discharge rate in the gas box of the semiconductor manufacturing facility is reduced, for example, by using a variable position damper in a duct above the gas box, and when the system requires maintenance, It is used for such a case. Changes may be made using programmable control devices and interconnects or other suitable means.

In one embodiment, the pressure in the exhaust gas piping from the fluid supply vessel is monitored, and when a pressure above a certain threshold is detected, an alarm is activated, the fluid supply vessel is isolated from the dispensing operation, The flow of the thin distributed gas is terminated, and the ventilation rate is, for example, 300 to 400 ft. ³ / min. The increase in the ventilation rate may be a function of the magnitude of the pressure excursion and thus larger deviations in the enclosure containing the fluid supply container may be accommodated at a higher ventilation rate. The insulation of the fluid supply vessel can be done by closing the vessel dispense valve, for example by manipulating the pneumatic valve actuator in the vessel, or by manipulating the valve in the piping or manifold containing this piping.

In another embodiment, an enclosure comprising a fluid supply container is provided with a fluid supply container, or a fluid supply container, or between the fluid supply container and a so-called pigtail (whereby the container is connected to a dispense flow circuit such as a valve mounting manifold) A toxic gas alarm may be provided to monitor the internal environment of the enclosure for toxic gas leaks from the piping or components of the enclosure. In certain embodiments, gas detection and valve closure assemblies may be constructed and installed in accordance with 3704.2.2.7 or other safety rules and regulations of the International Fire Regulations.

In various embodiments of the present invention, the risk level of the manufacturing tool may be monitored for specific tool conditions and process variables that determine this level of risk and may be varied by varying the rate of discharge for the tool, It is possible to achieve a predetermined risk level suitable for the facility. In addition to altering the rate of discharge, the present invention returns the emissions when a high risk condition is detected in response to monitored conditions, such as making general discharge into scrubbed discharge, or recycling discharge as a general discharge. Thus, if a hazardous condition is detected, the monitoring and control system can send back the effluent streaming through the gas box from the generic effluent to the scrubbing unit, or the effluent refluxing through the enclosure can instead be directed to the normal discharge line.

Accordingly, in another embodiment, the present invention relates to a method of managing the operation of an effluent streaming through a process unit, the method comprising the steps of monitoring at least one condition or operating parameter of a process unit determining a risk or hazard level , And sending the emission to one of a plurality of alternative emission processing units in response to a risk or hazard level determined from the monitored condition (s) or operational parameter (s). In such a method, the discharge rate can be adjusted according to the risk or hazard level determined from the monitored condition (s) or operating parameter (s).

The discharge rate can be increased in response to the monitoring of the container fluid pressure above a certain pressure due to the increasing ambient temperature conditions that cause the fluid supply container and its fluid contents to warm up and the subsequent dispensing operation and / If the vessel fluid pressure drops below such a predetermined pressure, the discharge rate may be reduced to a lower level for the next operation. This configuration can be accomplished using a pressure signal from the manifold to which the fluid supply vessel is connected, such as by using a pressure transducer in the manifold to monitor the pressure of the dispense gas that is indicative of fluid pressure in the vessel.

Thus, in various embodiments, the present invention provides a gas box / cabinet / cabinet to maintain a desired level of safe fluid storage and dispensing operations based on sensing conditions such as leaks, pressures, temperatures, etc. in the air flow path and / To a system and method for monitoring and controlling discharge flow rates in a process system including a ventilation assembly including an enclosure / feedback control.

In various specific embodiments, the effluent / air / fluid flow control element includes a vented inlet and / or a slatted slot opening, together with a monitoring device such as a flow meter and a pressure transducer, for example, Can be moved between positions.

In various embodiments, sorbent-based fluid storage and dispensing vessels may utilize a variety of subsystems, assemblies, instruments, and devices for monitoring, control, and feedback in the systems and processes of the present invention. For example, the sorbent-based fluid storage and dispensing vessel may utilize a dynamic fluid monitoring assembly to determine the fluid level in the vessel in which the fluid is being dispensed or to be dispensed, .

In one embodiment, the monitoring system comprises (i) at least one sensor for monitoring the characteristics of a fluid supply vessel or fluid dispensed therefrom, (ii) at least one sensor operably connected to one or more sensors for receiving monitoring data therefrom, And (iii) a data acquisition module operatively connected to the data acquisition module for processing the output from the data acquisition module and responsive to a graphical representation of the fluid in the fluid supply container, A processor for outputting and a display.

The one or more sensors may monitor the characteristics of the fluid supply vessel (e.g., strain in the structural elements of the vessel) indicative of the amount of fluid contained within the vessel. For example, one or more sensors may include strain gauges that are secured to the wall of the vessel in a strain sensing relationship, which may be useful, for example, when the fluid supply vessel is a pressure controlled vessel internally. In another embodiment, the monitoring sensor is configured to monitor the fluid pressure, the fluid temperature, the concentration of one or more components of the fluid, the velocity of the fluid, the pressure drop in the flow circuit connected to the fluid supply vessel, and / , ≪ / RTI > the nature of the fluid dispensed from the fluid supply vessel.

The fluid storage and dispensing vessel used in the ventilation gas management system and process of the present invention may be of any suitable type, for example, a sorbent-based fluid of the type commercialized by ATMI, Inc. (Danbury, Conn. A storage and dispensing vessel, or a fluid storage and dispensing vessel having a gas pressure regulator disposed internally in the interior fluid retaining space of the vessel as a commercially available type, commercially available from ATMI, Inc. (Danbury, Conn. have. This regulator-controlled container can be used as one or more regulators in the interior space, each regulator having a set point selected for safe distribution operation in the particular device employed. For example, the regulator (s) have predetermined setpoints for dispensing fluid from the vessel at normal to low pressure, e.g., sub-atmospheric pressure.

The fluid properties monitored in the emission management system and process may be, or may include, the pressure of the fluid dispensed from the fluid storage and dispensing vessel. The fluid may be any suitable chemical species, for example a semiconductor manufacturing fluid such as arsine, hydrogen fluoride, boron trichloride, boron trifluoride, silane, germane, germanium tetrafluoride or silicon tetrafluoride.

The fluid monitoring system can provide a suitable graphical representation of the fluid in the fluid supply vessel, such as providing a gas gauge type display comprising a two-dimensional region disposed within a rectangular field and having an upper boundary, The position of the upper boundary of the area indicates the amount of fluid remaining in the container.

The dispensing flow circuit associated with the fluid supply container may have various fluid monitoring, instrumentation and control elements coupled thereto. For example, the flow circuit may include a pressure reducing device, such as a limiting flow orifice (RFO), that controls the amount of fluid dispensed from the vessel.

In operation of the fluid supply vessel, the characteristics of the fluid to be raised or distributed can be monitored, the data used to generate the response responsive to the monitoring characteristic is obtained from the monitoring, and the output obtained from the data acquisition is processed A graphical representation of the fluid in the vessel or other output indicative of the fluid level.

In one embodiment, the fluid supply vessel comprises a gas storage and dispensing vessel containing an activated carbon adsorbent, which vessel is installed in the gas box of the ion implanter. One or more pressure transducers are installed in the gas box to monitor the pressure of the gas dispensed from the fluid supply vessel and to generate an output indicative of the monitored pressure delivered to the data collection module in the gas box. The data acquisition module transfers the data obtained by the monitoring to the processor and the display outside the gas box through a fiber optic cable connecting the data acquisition module and the external processor. The processor is programmably installed to determine the amount of fluid remaining in the fluid supply container and to output visual indicia and / or output data indicative of fluid remaining in the fluid supply container in the gas box to the display.

In another embodiment, the processor determines a temperature coefficient for a given end-point pressure of the gas dispensed from the fluid storage and dispensing vessel, normalizes the pressure sensed by the pressure transducer to a predetermined pressure in the gas box, Can be normalized to the predetermined pressure and the isotherm equation at this predetermined pressure can be applied to determine the amount of gas remaining in the gas storage and dispensing vessel and this amount can be output to the display.

In another embodiment comprising a ventilation gas management system of the present invention, the fluid supply vessel may be connected to a flow circuit comprising a manifold, and an isolation valve is disposed between the manifold and the pigtail associated with the fluid supply vessel. A pressure monitor can be placed in the manifold to monitor the pressure of the dispensed gas. The pressure monitor may include a pressure transducer and a controller, and in response, the controller closes the isolation valve to isolate the manifold from the fluid supply container if the pressure monitored in the manifold is higher than a predetermined or set point value. This manifold valve closing action may be coordinated with the operation of the ventilation gas management system to increase the flow of ventilation gas through the enclosure containing the fluid supply container.

The manifold may include mass flow controllers or other flow control devices therein and may be connected to a vacuum pump, a purge gas supply, and other suitable elements to effect discharge and purging.

In one embodiment, the manifold may be insulated or actuated to increase or decrease fluid flow from the fluid supply vessel in response to venting gas flow through the enclosure or enclosure containing the vessel and manifold. The vent gas is treated in the enclosure or outside thereof to a desired degree, so that the purified gas can then be recycled, if desired, into a gray room of a semiconductor manufacturing facility or a clean room of such equipment or other areas of such equipment. The fluid supply is regulated based on the ventilation gas properties, for example to reduce the constituent gas requirements for the ventilation gas to achieve an economical and efficient operation of the installation.

In another embodiment, the recycling and reuse of ventilation gas (e. G., Air) can be used to reduce the cost of ownership of the process management systems and processes used in the present invention. The use of sorbent-based fluid storage and dispensing vessels or internally pressure-controlled vessels makes it possible to operate with increased safety and is used for ventilation and circulation through gas boxes, gas cabinets or other enclosures including fluid supply vessels By reducing the air and monitoring the process conditions associated with the system elements or the fluid being stored, dispensed or used, the ventilation gas can be dynamically adjusted in a particularly efficient manner.

Thus, a reduction in the ventilation rate can result in fewer discharge air required, and as a result, there is no need to treat such discharge air in a scrubber or treatment system, or a separate duct construction If the size of the roof top scrubber is reduced and the gas box effluent is clean, this effluent can be effectively reclassified from " scrubbed effluent " to generic or heat effluent, The effluent can be combined with other similar effluent streams.

In various embodiments, the present invention contemplates an ion implantation apparatus in which an adsorbent system and / or internally pressure controlled dopant fluid supply vessel and gas box are considered as one system, And / or internally pressure regulated dopant fluid supply vessels. At the same time by this scheme, valves, piping, transducers, mass flow controllers of the flow circuit can be constructed inexpensively. For example, instead of heavy gauge metal tubing commonly used for containment of high pressure toxic or hazardous gases, high integrity nonmetallic tubing may be used in the flow circuit. Therefore, such high-integrity nonmetallic piping can utilize flexible pipings that are readily commercially available in various lengths and diameters, thus reducing the cost and the need for welds, connectors, etc. otherwise associated with flow circuits.

In another embodiment, a variable position damper or variable speed fan is used above the gas box, so that the flow of the venting gas through the gas box can be optimized and minimized in normal operating conditions. In the conventional case, the flow rate of the ventilation gas through the gas box during the semiconductor manufacturing ion implantation is maintained at a fixed level, ³ / min (CFM) or higher. Using an adsorbent-based fluid supply vessel, 25 ft. ^A ventilation gas flow rate as low as ³ / min can be used, and work safety is improved. With this configuration, the position of the damper and / or the position and the operating speed of the fan can be determined based on the operating characteristics of the gas box and the oil in the gas box. For example, the position of the damper can be adjusted based on the pressure of the fluid being dispensed and / or the speed of the fan can be adjusted according to this pressure level, so that the flow rate of the ventilation gas is adjusted according to the pressure of the fluid being dispensed . Alternatively, the flow rate of the ventilation gas can be adjusted, for example, by providing a ventilation window of variable area in the door of the gas box for selective adjustment to reduce the flow area by reducing the area of the ventilation window and also to increase the surface velocity of the ventilation gas .

In another embodiment, the venting rate of venting gas through the gas cabinet for venting to the gas cabinet may be controlled, for example, by installing a new fluid supply container (s) and removing the fluid- For example, 200 to 300 CFM when the door of the gas cabinet is opened for operation, and when the doors of the gas cabinet are closed, the discharge rate of the ventilation gas flowing through the gas cabinet is set to a low flow rate, Can be reduced to 15 to 120 CFM.

The pressure monitoring signal provided from the fluid delivery manifold may be used to control the rate of venting of the venting gas through the gas cabinet or the rate of venting of such venting gas may be determined by the amount of fluid remaining in the vessel to which the fluid is being dispensed, ). ≪ / RTI > For example, it is possible to monitor the strain in the vessel wall of the fluid holding vessel to generate an output correlated with the fluid level, so that this output can be delivered simultaneously to the processor and display unit as described above, And can be used to adjust the rate of ventilation of gas flowing through the gas cabinet in accordance with a predetermined relationship between gas flow rates.

If the residual amount of gas in the vessel is smaller, the exhaust gas required to remove such gas leakage that may arise from the vessel "sweeping" the internal space of the gas cabinet will be less. In this way, by adjusting the ventilation gas flow rate in accordance with the remaining amount of gas in the container, it is possible to control the flow rate of the gas in the gas cabinet, which is enabled by the low-pressure adsorber- Substantial cost savings can be achieved with respect to gas cabinets operating at low constant vent gas flow rates.

By " adjusting " the vent gas flow rate to " match " the specific fluid level or other specific fluid vessel, process system or operating condition characteristic, the vent gas flow rate can be substantially reduced to thereby substantially reduce the vent gas Significant savings can be achieved in related equipment such as pumps, blowers, purifiers and the like, thus significantly reducing the required maintenance and operating costs associated with the vent gas flow through the gas cabinet.

While the foregoing description is directed to gas cabinets, this discussion is equally applicable to other enclosures in which the adsorbent-based fluid supply vessel is used and in which the vent gas is perfused to sweep away the leaking components from the enclosure.

The gas enclosure comprising the fluid supply container (s) may be installed in any suitable manner to accommodate the pressure or fluid level of the container. For example, in one implementation, the system may allow a low vent flow rate whenever the pressure in the fluid supply vessel is below atmospheric pressure or below a predetermined level, but if the pressure exceeds that level or another alarm condition occurs, So that the discharge speed can be obtained. In this way, the wide scope of the invention can be applied even to enclosure structures in which high pressure gas cylinders are used, as the pressure of the high pressure gas decreases as the gas is dispensed, and even as the gas pressure decreases with subsequent gas distribution, The flow rate can be correspondingly gradually reduced.

Therefore, the present invention provides an integrated approach to ventilation gas utilization that avoids the significant disadvantages of the prior art designs of over-designing the fluid supply container enclosure against the worst-case emission scenarios and maintaining a ventilation flow rate that continuously accommodates the worst- I am thinking about the plan.

In various specific embodiments of the present invention, temperature, pressure, or other conditions within the gas cabinet enclosure comprising the adsorbent-based fluid supply vessel can be monitored and also used as a basis for controlling the ventilation gas flow rate.

Accordingly, the present invention contemplates providing a " smart " enclosure that can match or trigger the vent gas flow rate in response to the hazard condition (s) associated with operation of the enclosure, including fluid distribution from the vessel (s).

The fluid supply vessel in the enclosure may also be closed if the pressure of the gas being dispensed exceeds a predetermined upper limit or the isolation valve between the vessel and the distribution manifold is closed or the flow control valve in the valve head assembly of the vessel is closed, The ventilation gas damper is automatically opened until the condition is returned to increase the discharge rate through the enclosure so as to provide a higher level of safety in operation of the enclosure and the container (s) therein.

The fluid pressure in the fluid supply container, the volume remaining in the fluid in the container, the total dispensed fluid volume exiting the container, the weight of the adsorbed fluid in the fluid supply container, the pressure in the enclosure, the temperature in the enclosure, or Adjustment of the ventilation gas flow rate through the fluid supply container enclosure according to any other suitable variable or combination of variables is accomplished by suitably connecting the sensor or monitor to the processor receiving output from the sensor or monitor, To generate a correlated control signal that is used to adjust the volumetric flow rate of the passing vent gas. The processor may be a microprocessor, a programmable logic device, a multipurpose computer, or other processing device effective for this purpose, which is specially adapted to perform monitoring and control operations. Alternatively, the signal from the sensor may directly trigger an easing action, such as isolating the gas cylinder from the system, sounding an alarm, and / or adjusting the position of the damper to allow more ventilation flow.

The output control signal generated by the processor may be in any suitable form as long as it is effective for regulation. For example, an output signal may be transmitted to energize the pneumatic valve actuator, or to open and close a flow control valve, damper, or other flow determination device as desired to provide adequate flow of vent gas through the enclosure, It is possible to increase the pumping rate of the pump or the blower used as the pump.

The present invention has the following advantages associated with the use of sub-atmospheric fluid supply vessels: (i) the need to perform an exhaust to an ion-implanted gas box via a central loop top emergency scrubber, such as a water scrubber, an adsorbent scrubber, and a chemisorbent scrubber (Ii) relieves the requirement for partial discharge of personnel from the fluid container area, or, when there is a minimum number of employees in the vicinity of the exchange of the fluid supply container, (Iii) the most heavily used equipment, including the ion implanter, is placed in the center of the facility in the arrangement of the equipment in the semiconductor manufacturing facility, and So that the injector is limited to the remote area of the installation. There is also obtained a substantial further advantage of the use of the fluid supply vessel below atmospheric pressure by, in addition to the advantage of the workflow management and distribution that result in improved, reducing ventilation gas requirements.

In a gas enclosure that utilizes the ventilation gas system and process of the present invention, the gas enclosure may include an internal baffle to optimize the sweeping of the vent gas through the enclosure, and additional enhancement means, such as a seal in the door and access port, Can be used. A particular enclosure application may utilize a different number of air changes in the enclosure under different conditions or a ventilation gas flow rate that is adjusted according to system conditions to obtain different pressure or other variable response results within the enclosure under different conditions.

With the regulation of the ventilation gas flow rate, the facility utilizing it is capable of generating less " conditioned air " as well as monitoring and reducing the gas emissions in the operation of the enclosure, including a sub- Can be reduced. (2) filtering the filtered air to dehumidify the air; and (3) heating the dehumidified air to generally 68 ° C to 70 ° C, And (4) adding steam to re-wet the air, typically at 38 ° C to 40 ° C relative humidity. By reducing the discharge rate, substantial reductions in the constituent gas requirements, cooling, dehumidification, heating, monitoring, detection and construction costs can be achieved.

Thus, substantial and unexpected improvements in the system and process can be achieved by dynamically adjusting the ventilation gas flow rate in response to the fluid distribution system and process parameters, since the adsorbent system and / or internal regulator fluid supply vessel Can significantly reduce the energy consumption and capital and operating costs of the plant using the plant, increase the average ventilation and exhaust gas equipment time between failures (MBT), and thus significantly reduce the burden of maintenance and repair related to the house exhaust and ventilation system . As a result, the fluid utilization facility is significantly more efficient and also the ventilation and discharge requirements associated with the nested fluid supply container can be mitigated and also the configuration, monitoring and control requirements are reduced and thus the gas source of the installation can be used more effectively have.

When applied to semiconductor manufacturing facilities, this dynamic control of the ventilation gas flow makes a significant contribution to cost savings and energy efficiency. In semiconductor manufacturing facilities, the cleanliness of various areas of the facility ranges from Class M1 (ISO Class 3) to Class M6 (ISO Class 9) and the cleanroom is a recirculating air handler that moves millions of cubic feet of air to maintain cleanliness conditions. . Semiconductor manufacturing facilities can use more than 450 kWh of energy per 200 mm wafer processed in the facility and 60% of the energy consumption in the plant is nominally used for chillers, air recirculation and configuration fans, This is due to the plant system including the on-site nitrogen plant. The remaining 40% of energy consumption is attributed to process equipment, which is the main source of energy consumption.

One example of the savings that can be achieved with this dynamic control of the ventilation gas flow in a semiconductor manufacturing facility is a 200 ft. A reduction of ³ / min reduces the electrical demand by 2.2 kW and also saves more than 12,000 to 18,000 kWh / year in the fan and cooler energy required to regulate the constituent gases. Thus, the average energy cost for the installation can be reduced to $ 6 to $ 8 / ft ³ ./min/ year.

It will be appreciated that the dynamic adjustment of the ventilation gas flow can be applied to a single container fluid supply container enclosure and a multiple container fluid supply container enclosure wherein the ventilation gas flow in the single container fluid fluid supply container enclosure is stored in a single container, Or volume characteristics of the fluid being dispensed, and in the multi-container fluid supply container enclosure, the individual containers may be variable conditions, i.e. one or more of such containers may be completely filled, One or more of the containers may be empty or nearly empty, and one or more of the containers may be the middle volume of the pressure and fluid volume therein.

Therefore, in such a multi-container fluid supply container enclosure it may be necessary to utilize an integrated monitoring system in which each container in the enclosure is individually monitored for fluid level, fluid pressure, pressure of the fluid dispensed from each container, Processes the resulting monitoring data to provide an overall controlled level of ventilation gas flow through the enclosure. This integrated flow can include, for example, strain gauges in each of a plurality of vessels in an enclosure, each strain gauge generating an output that is correlated to the remaining amount and pressure of fluid in the vessel and is also coupled to a data acquisition and processor module , This module provides an output control signal that is used to integrate, sum, or accumulate and process the data to control the flow of ventilation gas through the enclosure.

And the adjustment of the ventilation gas flow through the enclosure may be accomplished by adjusting the position of the damper, ventilation window, etc. as described above, adjusting the flow control valve in the ventilation gas transfer line that transfers the ventilation gas to the enclosure containing the fluid supply container Including adjusting the speed of the pump used to pump the vent gas to the enclosure and / or to pump the vent gas to the enclosure, or to monitor the equipment or fluid supply operation Or other suitable manner of adjusting the volume flow rate or volume or velocity of the ventilation gas to a desired degree based on the conditions associated with the ventilation gas.

In one embodiment, an enclosure comprising a plurality of fluid supply vessels is delimited to provide an individual sub-enclosure for each of the plurality of containers in the enclosure, and thus, for each sub-enclosure comprising the individual containers of the plurality of containers, This can also be done simply and quickly.

In this configuration, as an example, a fluid supply vessel containing 2.2 liters of hydrogen at a full fluid level, e.g., 700 Torr (= 93.3 kPa) at full filling pressure in a sub enclosure holding only such a vessel, Can be vented to the flow of ventilation gas through such sub-enclosure at a flow rate of ³ / min. And if such a container is used for active distribution, the pressure of the hydrogen in the container will decrease as the hydrogen is continuously discharged until the container is evacuated and only the " heels " residue of the hydrogen is left. Continuously or alternatively, by adjusting the ventilation rate through the sub-enclosure stepwise to the monitored pressure of the hydrogen in the vessel, the ventilation gas flow rate is reduced to, for example, 60 (60 kPa) when the hydrogen pressure in the vessel is reduced to 500 Torr ft. ³ / min, and when the hydrogen pressure in the vessel is reduced to 350 Torr (= 46.7 kPa), the ventilation gas flow rate is, for example, 45 ft. ³ / min. ≪ / RTI >

Thus, by dividing the multi-container gas supply container enclosure into dedicated sub enclosure portions, independent control of the flow of ventilation gas through each of these sub enclosure portions is possible, and leakage from the fluid supply container or its associated flow circuit in the enclosure The ventilation gas flow can be further optimized in a manner that is consistent with the highest level of safety work that can be accommodated.

Ventilation gas control can be integrated with the off-gas process in fluid utilization facilities, such as using off-gas to remove heat from process equipment in the fluid utilization facility as a so-called heat release. Air can be used as a heat sink to convectively remove heat from process equipment and to minimize concentration levels of toxic or hazardous components with leaking gases from such equipment. In a semiconductor manufacturing facility, heat effluent is typically sent to an external generic emission treatment, and the gas box air effluent is typically sent to the scrubbed effluent. Typical emissions treatment units can use a rooftop or elsewhere to treat common emissions and discharge them to the atmosphere. The scrubbed effluent generally undergoes liquid / gas scrubbing operations to remove toxic or hazardous species from such exhaust gases.

In an embodiment wherein the adsorbent system or internally pressure regulated fluid supply vessel is used in a gas box of an ion implanter to supply a dopant gas to the ion supply of such a process system, the heat effluent is recycled Safety monitoring equipment for the detection of dangerous or toxic species before it is sent back to you. In this embodiment, the gas box emissions from the gas box of the ion implanter are generally sent back to the emissions, delivered through life safety equipment monitoring for the detection of hazardous or toxic species, To the emission processing unit. Such modifications are facilitated by the use of a low outlet pressure of the adsorbent system or internally the pressure controlled fluid supply vessel and the gas discharged from the fluid supply vessel.

In semiconductor manufacturing plants, the emission requirements for a facility come from several categories: thermal / general emissions, acid emissions, selective ammonia emissions, and volatile organic compound (VOC) emissions. Most process effluents have a low volume rate, for example, 2 to 10 ft. ³ / min, and a point-of-use reduction system is used to keep toxic and hazardous materials out of the facility and limit exposure to employees. The process effluent exits the loop acid scrubber through the concentrated acid outlet. The wet bench process effluent flows directly into the loop-mounted scrubber due to the associated high flow rate. The heat effluent is discharged from the untreated state or, in some cases, sent back to the semiconductor facility.

Generally, process tools and gas / chemical areas use containment enclosures for safety. To further limit the potential of hazardous substances of toxicity in the work area, these process enclosures are frequently run at negative pressure on the manufacturing facility as a whole. Flammable combustible materials require higher discharge levels. Generally, the ion implanter has 1500 ~ 3500 ft. ³ / min, which is assigned to process emissions (1 to 2 ft. ³ / min), gas box emissions (300 to 400 ft. ³ / min) and the remaining heat output. The facility air can be sucked through the windshield in the enclosure to cool the power supply and the high energy elements therein, and the discharge of this gas passes through the discharge stack at the top of the process tool. The exhaust air temperature may be about 75-85 < 0 > F. Most semiconductor fabrication facilities are located at 1000 to 2000 ft. Ft., Because accidents at process discharge piping or significant release of fluids in gas boxes can contaminate the heat effluent. ^The heat discharge is discharged at a flow rate of ³ / min to the house central discharge system (heat discharge section or acid discharge section).

The vent gas regulation discussed herein can achieve a 50-75% emission reduction for a corresponding process system without such vent gas regulation.

Concerns about low levels of toxic components entering the semiconductor fabrication facility can be addressed and resolved using chemical filters to chemically adsorb the substances that may be present in the heat effluent. The characteristics of the chemical filter are advantageously dynamically fast operation and low pressure drop. A toxic gas monitor can be used to verify the performance of chemical filters. The injector gas box can be vented to the loop scrubber and using the adsorbent based fluid supply vessel below atmospheric pressure in accordance with the present invention can significantly reduce gas box emissions, ³ / min or less. The process effluent may be treated with a point of use scrubber or may be vented through a central acid scrubber of the process system. In such a system, a selective heat exchanger can be used to remove the thermal load, or the existing recirculation / cooling capability of the installation can be used to remove the heat load.

If the heat effluent is returned to the service area, for example, in some cases, substantially 1500 ft. ³ / min, which is accompanied by substantial energy savings. When modifying existing process facilities to send injector heat emissions to the service area, resending effectively expands the capabilities of existing discharge systems and frees up capacity for other process equipment.

Thus, dynamic adjustment of ventilation gas flow based on process system operating conditions and equipment elements can achieve substantial improvements in cost and efficiency. Previously, the gas cabinet discharge rate was based on the worst-case emission scenario determined for the starting pressure of the fluid supply vessel and the limited flow orifice (RFO) diameter used in the gas distribution flow circuit.

The worst release rate from the fluid supply vessel can be substantially lowered by an effective reduction of the pressure at which the gas is dispensed in the fluid supply vessel. This is particularly the case when an adsorbent-based fluid supply vessel is used which stores the adsorbed gas at sub-atmospheric pressure. In the case of a fluid supply vessel with an internal regulator, the set point of its internal regulator is set such that fluid distribution occurs at a desired pressure, for example, a pressure in the range of 100 psig (= 689.5 kPa) at sub-atmospheric pressure.

In both cases, the delivery rate of the dispensed gas can be determined using RFO in the flow circuit associated with the fluid supply vessel. In this way, the gas flow rate can be more closely matched to actual process demands, and the worst release rate can be lowered by about 4 to 10 times compared with the case of using a conventional high-pressure gas cylinder. As a result, the cabinet ventilation speed can thereby be reduced.

Additional disposal can be achieved by placing the fluid supply vessel closer to the process tool using the dispensed fluid, thus avoiding the cost of long piping in the installation. The sub-atmospheric operation can be used to reduce the risk associated with high-pressure cylinders by 1000 factors, so that the fluid supply vessel can be repositioned closer to the point of use by several hundred meters and the efficiency of the entire plant can be significantly improved.

Dynamic control of the ventilation gas can also be utilized with equipment such as a wet bench and chemical tank in the vented housing or limited area of the facility.

Referring now to the drawings, Figure 1 schematically depicts a gas cabinet 40 comprising a sorbent-based fluid supply vessel 12, as part of a fluid utilization treatment system 10, The flow of the ventilation gas is controlled according to the remaining amount of fluid.

As shown, the gas cabinet 40 provides an enclosure defining an interior space 42 in which a fluid supply vessel 12 is installed, which is placed on the base member 74 And is also held in a vertically upright position by brackets 76, 78 secured to the wall of the cabinet 40.

The fluid supply container 12 includes a casing defining an interior space of the container, which contains a physical adsorbent 14, which in one embodiment is stored in the adsorbent and is dispensed under dispensing conditions A single-type activated carbon article having adsorptive affinity for a fluid to be dispensed from a container under the same conditions. The fluid may comprise a semiconductor fabrication gas, such as, for example, hydrogen, hydrogen fluoride, boron trifluoride, silane or other fluids.

The container casing is coupled to a valve head assembly 18 at its upper neck portion 16 which includes a flow control valve which is connected to the interior space of the casing and to the output port of the valve head assembly 18 May be opened to dispense fluid from the vessel under dispensing conditions associated with a pressure differential between external flow circuits including a dispensing line 34 coupled thereto. The valve head assembly 18 is connected to a valve actuator 20, which can be actuated to open and close a valve in the valve head assembly 18.

A fluid level monitor 26 is provided on the outer surface of the container casing and is operated to monitor the remaining fluid level in the container and to output a correlation signal indicative of the amount of fluid contained therein to the signal delivery line 64. The fluid level monitor 26 may be any suitable type and may be operably connected to a pressure and / or temperature sensor disposed in the interior space of the vessel to monitor the pressure in the vessel and / or the temperature of the adsorbent in the vessel To provide an output indicative of the amount of fluid remaining in the vessel for dispensing.

The container shown in Figure 1 is of the adsorbent type, but the container may alternatively be of a type having one or more pressure regulators in the interior space of the container, the pressure regulator being determined by the conditions in the fluid flow circuit connected to the container Lt; RTI ID = 0.0 > a < / RTI > These pressure regulated vessels may use the same or similar types of fluid level monitors, or alternatively, other types of pressure vessels, such as strain gauges, such as strain gauges, You can also use monitors.

Referring again to FIG. 1, dispense line 34 may include a restricted flow orifice 30 therein, which serves to help maintain a desired flow of dispensed fluid in the dispense line. The dispensing line 34 may further include a pressure transducer 32 which acts to monitor the pressure in the dispensing line and responsively output a signal indicative of the sensed pressure to the signal transfer line 66.

The fluid dispensed from the distribution line 34 of the flow circuit connected to the vessel in the gas cabinet 40 flows within the transfer line 36 and into the fluid utilization section 38. This fluid utilization unit may include a vapor deposition chamber for chemical vapor deposition or atomic layer deposition of a thin film material on a semiconductor substrate or an injector or other fluid utilization chamber for ion implantation of a dopant species resulting from a fluid dispensed from the vessel 12 And a processing unit.

The processing system 10 further includes a central processing unit (CPU) 24, which is operatively connected to the display 58 by an output signal delivery line 56.

A ventilation gas supply 46 is connected in flow communication with the interior space 42 of the gas cabinet 40 by a ventilation gas supply line 48 including a flow control valve 50. The interior space 42 of the gas cabinet 40 is also connected in flow communication with a vent gas discharge line 72 comprising a vent pump 70. The system shown in FIG. 1 is simplified and outlined, and in a conventional gas cabinet ventilation gas generally flows from the bottom or base of the enclosure and is sucked through ducts at the top or back of the box.

The CPU 24 is connected to the data acquisition module 60 in a signal reception relationship via a signal transmission line 62 and the module is connected to the fluid level monitor 26 via signal transmission lines 64, And the pressure transducer 32, respectively.

The CPU 24 is also connected to the flow control valve 50 in the ventilation gas supply line 48 by the signal transmission line 52 and is also connected to the ventilation gas discharge line 72 by the signal transmission line 68. [ Is connected to the speed control section of the discharge pump (70).

Finally, the CPU 24 is connected by a signal delivery line 22 to a valve actuator 20, which is associated with a valve in the valve head assembly 18.

In operation, the dispensing of the fluid may be initiated by a cycle time program executed by the CPU 24, and the CPU transmits an actuating signal to the actuator 20 via the signal delivery line 22, Thereby opening the valve in the valve head assembly 18 of FIG. This action creates a pressure differential between the interior space of the fluid supply vessel and the dispensing line 34 so that fluid is desorbed from the physical adsorbent 14 in the vessel 14 and is easier to discharge fluid therefrom.

At the same time, the CPU 24 transmits a control signal to the ventilation gas flow control valve 50 to the signal transfer line 52 and to the speed control section of the discharge pump 70 to the signal transfer line 68. In this way, the ventilation gas is, for example, 25 to 80 ft. Flow through the inner space 42 of the gas cabinet 40 at a low flow rate, which may be ³ / min, indicating that the fluid in the fluid supply vessel 12 is at a low pressure below atmospheric pressure. The fluid is dispensed from the fluid supply vessel 12 at a pressure of, for example, 700 Torr (= 93.3 kPa) and flows in the dispense line 34 and the transfer line 36 to the fluid utilization section 38.

During this dispensing operation, the characteristic (s) correlated with the fluid level in the vessel may be sensed by the fluid level monitor 26 and used to generate an output signal that is correlated with the fluid level in the fluid supply vessel 12 have. This output signal is transferred to the data acquisition module 60 via the signal transfer line 64. The pressure transducer 32 in the distribution line 34 monitors the pressure of the discharged fluid and delivers the corresponding signal to the data acquisition module 60 via the signal transfer line 66. And the data received by the data acquisition module is used to generate an output signal that is communicated to the CPU 24 via a signal transfer line 62.

The CPU 24 may process the output signal received from the data acquisition module and generate an output that is communicated to the display 58, which is a graphical display, to the signal delivery line 56, and in one embodiment, A graphical simulation of a fluid vessel having an indicator bar or fluid level that indicates the amount of fluid remaining. Alternatively, the display 58 may be programmable to output the data in a specific form of the desired symbol.

As the fluid dispensing operation progresses, the remaining amount of fluid in the fluid supply vessel 12 gradually decreases, and this gradual decrease in fluid level is monitored by the strain gage 26, and a corresponding signal is sent to the data acquisition module Where it is delivered to the CPU to provide a corresponding real-time value of the fluid volume in the container or the pressure in the container. At the same time, the signal from the pressure transducer 32 is passed to a data acquisition module and CPU 24 to provide pressure read monitoring of the dispensed fluid.

Based on these inputs, the CPU determines the appropriate level of ventilation gas flow and correspondingly controls the flow control valve 50 with a control signal delivered to the signal delivery line 52, To control the speed control of the discharge pump 70, so that the ventilation gas flow is adapted to the monitored fluid level and pressure conditions.

As the fluid distribution progresses, the CPU will continue to receive signal input from the monitoring device through the data acquisition module and adjust the flow rate of ventilation gas through the gas cabinet to maintain the required level of safety to accommodate the leaking condition do. Accordingly, as the remaining amount of the fluid in the container 12 decreases, the CPU 24 correspondingly adjusts the flow rate of the ventilation gas passing through the internal space 42 of the gas cabinet 40 downward, The flow rate will be reduced accordingly as well as the monitored fluid level and pressure. This controlled reduction of the vent gas flow may be continuous or stepwise in nature, if necessary or desirable in a given application of the treatment system.

The device for monitoring the fluid level and the fluid pressure to be dispensed can also be used as a flume detection system in which the CPU provides a valve in the valve head assembly of the fluid supply vessel when the fluid level and / And concurrently terminates the flow of vent gas through the gas cabinet, thus replacing the fluid supply vessel by removing the fluid supply vessel from the gas cabinet and replacing the removed vessel with a new fluid supply vessel. The CPU 24 is also in communication with an alarm or other output device to inform the operator that fluid depletion from the fluid supply container is imminent and that there is a need to replace the depleted container.

Thus, the CPU 24 can be programmed with hardware, software, firmware, or any other set of computable instructions to perform monitoring and control of the fluid dispensing operation and ventilation of the enclosure including the fluid supply container .

Figure 2 schematically illustrates a semiconductor fabrication facility 110 that requires the use of air emissions for operation wherein the venting of the gas box 114 and the injector enclosure 112 is regulated according to process conditions.

The semiconductor manufacturing facility 10 or fab may include a rescue facility, such as a building or other rescue building, including a clean room, a gray room, and other facility areas of the facility. The semiconductor manufacturing facility includes an ion implanter tool contained within an injector enclosure 112 in which a gas box 114 is installed, together with auxiliary equipment that is well known in the art and does not require sophistication.

The injector enclosure sweeps the outflow of contaminant species out of the gas box or associated flow circuit inside the enclosure and injects air and flow into the interior space of the enclosure to remove heat, Or a housing or containment vessel provided with an opening (not shown). The resulting heat effluent is discharged from the injector enclosure to the exhaust ducts 120, 122, 124, 126 and 128, which have flow control dampers 130, 132, 134, 136 and 138, respectively. Exhaust ducts are located at locations where the effective hydrodynamic perfusion of the heat effluent into each of these ducts will take place (e.g., " Exhaust Zone # 1 ", " Exhaust Zone # 1 ", & 3 ", " Discharge Zone # 4 ", and " Discharge Zone # 5 "), and in the illustrated exemplary embodiment, the discharge duct is 9 inches Diameter. ≪ / RTI >

The injector enclosure 112 may have any suitable monitoring and control means as long as it is necessary or desirable for the operation of the ion implantation tool and the air venting operation. For example, the enclosure may have a thermocouple 116 or other temperature sensing device within the enclosure, which may be a programmable central processing unit (CPU), a microprocessor, a programmable logic controller (PLC) Lt; RTI ID = 0.0 > and / or < / RTI > other means of operation. For example, the thermocouple 116 may be operatively coupled to a controller responsive to the setting of the flow control damper 130, 132, 134, 136, 138 to regulate the flow of heat emission proportional to the heat generated in the injector enclosure 112 Lt; / RTI > The flow circuit schematically depicted may include any suitable conduits, conduits, flow paths, manifolds, etc., as appropriate for the particular air emissions used in the treatment facility. The gas box of the injector as shown drains the gas box discharge to the discharge line 118. In certain embodiments, the gas box effluent may be vented at a flow rate of 300 to 400 cubic feet per minute (CFM).

The ion implanter schematically illustrated is a component for performing an ion implantation operation and typically includes an ion implantation process chamber, a gas cabinet containing a source gas for implantation work, a vacuum pump, a beam launcher, a control cabinet, an end station, Stocker, mini environment, and the like, and typically include them. The source gas for the ion implantation operation can be dispensed from a low pressure dopant supply of the type described in U.S. Patent No. 5,518,828 to Tom et al., Which allows the gas storage and delivery unit to discharge at a flow rate of about 50 to 100 CFM It can be done. Alternatively, other suitable supply portions of the ion implantation species may be used.

Although not shown for ease of illustration, the ion implanter tool produces an ion implant process effluent which is discharged to the effluent line from the tool and can flow into the loop-mounted reduction system of the semiconductor manufacturing facility Or alternatively flows to a point of use reduction unit to process the process effluent containing ionic impurities, recombination species, carrier gas, etc., and then the locally treated process effluent is treated for final treatment and release To the house discharge system. This point of use reduction may be of any suitable type, such as a catalytic oxidation unit, a scrubber unit (wet and / or dry), and the like.

From the exhaust ducts 120, 122, 124, 126 and 128, air emissions (heat exhaust) from the injector enclosure flow into the header 140, which at a flow rate that can be as high as 2000 CFM in certain embodiments It is a 12 inch header that receives recombined air emissions. From this header the recombined air effluent flows into a discharge passage 142 containing a thermocouple 144 for monitoring the temperature of the air effluent and the chemical filter 154, the air filter 156 and the heat exchangers 158 and 160, (Which is connected to an appropriate cooling water supply (not shown) by a flow circuit 162 including a water supply line 164 with a valve and a water return line 166) And the air discharge at the downstream end of the internal space of the air discharge processing unit enters the discharge blower 170 and is finally discharged to the ambient air environment of the semiconductor manufacturing facility, such as the gray chamber of the semiconductor manufacturing facility, ) So that the recirculated air emissions recombine with the open air in the semiconductor manufacturing facility building.

As shown, the effluent treatment unit 146 is provided with a pressure differential gage 148 connected to the upstream piping leg 150 and the downstream piping leg 152 to provide a pressure sensing output. And this pressure sensing output can be used to adjust the speed of the exhaust blower 170 or to control, monitor or control the operating elements of the emission processing system.

Similarly, the temperature of the heat output sensed by the thermocouple 144 may be used to responsively regulate the flow of coolant in the flow circuit 162 such that a desired cooling of the heat output is made to be suitable for recirculation to the semiconductor manufacturing facility.

In this embodiment, the heat emission processing unit 146 is provided in a housing which is a unit type module. The chemical filter 154 may comprise any suitable material having an adsorptive affinity for undesirable contaminants that may be present in the heat effluent gas stream. The adsorbent material may comprise two or more adsorbent species or alternatively may comprise a single material effective to remove its undesirable constituents from the heat effluent. The scrubber material may comprise a chemical adsorbent or a physical adsorbent or a combination of the two.

The adsorbent can be any suitable form (e.g., granular or other discontinuous, regular or irregular geometric shape), suitable size and size distribution to provide the appropriate surface area to the heat discharge during contact operations where undesirable contaminants are removed from the heat effluent Lt; / RTI > The scrubbing material can therefore be provided in a fixed bed through which the heat exhaust gas stream flows. The size and shape of these beds can be tailored to provide adequate pressure drop and perfusion characteristics that meet the considerations of a basic fixed bed adsorbent vessel design.

One preferred scrubber material usefully employed in the practice of the present invention is the S520 resin (commercially available from ATMI, Inc. of Danbury, Conn.), Which is capable of removing hydrides and acid gas contaminants Boron trifluoride). The scrubber material may be provided in honeycomb form to achieve good collection of contaminants while maintaining a low pressure drop in the chemical filter of the treatment unit.

The air filter 156 may be any suitable type effective to remove particles from the heat effluent. It will be appreciated that an air filter may alternatively or additionally be provided upstream of the chemical filter although it is shown schematically downstream of the chemical filter.

The contaminants have been removed by contact with the scrubber material and the heat effluent from which the particles have been filtered by contact with the air filter 156 will pass through the heat exchanger 158,160. These heat exchangers can communicate with the coolant supply line as shown, so that the coolant flows into the heat exchanger for cooling of the heat effluent and the coolant is discharged from the heat exchanger to the coolant discharge line 166 do. In this way, the discharged coolant in line 166 will remove heat from the heat effluent. Alternatively, the heat exchanger element may achieve expansion cooling of the heat effluent, or other means and means may be used to remove heat from the heat effluent.

The heat exchanger is an optional element of the air discharge processing unit and may be omitted if the semiconductor manufacturing facility has sufficient cooling capability incorporated in its HVAC system since the air of the semiconductor manufacturing facility continues to flow through the cooler chiller) and the filter.

The air emission processing unit may further include a toxic gas monitor, wherein the heat emission is monitored by the toxic gas monitor for the presence of any contaminants therein. The toxic gas monitor is located upstream of the chemical filter and alerts the operator if leaks are occurring and progressing (air emissions entering the air discharge unit are contaminated with leaks or other contamination).

Alternatively, a toxic gas monitor may be disposed downstream of the chemical filter to provide an alarm or other output indicating that the contaminated air exhaust is passing through the chemical filter.

As yet another alternative, the air emission processing unit may include a toxic gas monitor upstream and downstream of the chemical filter. In this case, the toxic gas monitor (s) will stop the operation of the injector, terminate the flow of the dopant, turn off the injector blower, maintain the negative pressure in the gas box (to avoid contamination being swept out and mixing with the heat discharge) The flow can be increased.

Alternatively, the toxic gas monitor activates an alarm to alert the operator to replace the chemical filter and replace the scrubbing medium with a new material.

By flowing the treated heat effluent into the environment of the semiconductor manufacturing facility, the additional gas burden that would exist if the heat effluent flows into the house discharge system is avoided. As a result, the house drainage system can be made smaller and can be designed more efficiently for the final treatment of the exhaust air leaving the semiconductor manufacturing facility.

The air discharge unit advantageously comprises a high throughput, high dynamic efficiency air purifier / filter unit capable of returning the heat discharge to the semiconductor manufacturing facility. The size and configuration of such an air purifier / filter arrangement may be such that a linear velocity of an appropriate magnitude of, for example, from about 0.1 to about 2 m / sec is obtained in the flow of heat discharge through the air purifier / filter unit.

By providing this dedicated air discharge processing unit, it is possible to reuse 1000 to 2000 CFM of heat output per ion implanter in a semiconductor manufacturing facility in a typical semiconductor manufacturing facility of the type schematically shown in Figure 2, The effluent will flow into the loop reduction unit as in the conventional case. This recycled heat effluent will recombine with the gas environment in the semiconductor manufacturing facility where the constituent air is sucked in to the tool to remove heat from the tool, thus significant savings are achieved. Reduced overall house emissions requirements can result in capital cost savings of US $ 100 / CFM in house emissions when building new semiconductor manufacturing facilities.

In another variation of the semiconductor manufacturing process system shown in Figure 2, the effluent that is reconditioned and discharged to the discharge conduit 172 for recirculation flows to the recycle line 226 and is supplied to the injector enclosure as additional exhaust air to the injector enclosure I can go.

As another alternative, a pressure transducer, thermocouple, or other sensor element 212 may be connected to the injector 220 to monitor the internal environment within the injector enclosure 112 and deliver a corresponding sense signal to the processor 220 via the signal transfer line 218. [ And the processor can be programmed to deliver the corresponding output signal to the signal delivery line 214 to the discharge supply 214 to allow the discharge to flow from the line 216 to the injector enclosure, The flow is regulated in response to monitored conditions or equipment sensed by the sensor element (212).

Also, as another variant, a dedicated ventilation gas supply 200 may be provided to allow the ventilation gas to flow through the supply line 200 to the gas box 114 to allow it to flow. Instead of flowing into the effluent facility, the gas box effluent is processed and refluxed into the header 140 to the recycle line 224 for recirculation to the injector enclosure.

The conditions in the gas box are monitored with an appropriate sensor (not shown), which generates an output signal that is communicated to the controller 206 via a signal delivery line 204. This controller 206 generates a control signal in response to this sensing which is communicated to the supply 200 via signal delivery line 208 to regulate the operation of the supply, Is adjusted in proportion to the sensed condition in the gas box or in a slightly different, correlated manner.

The sensed conditions in the gas box may be, for example, the amount of fluid remaining in the fluid supply container in the gas box and / or the pressure of the fluid dispensed in such a fluid supply container.

As another alternative, the reconditioned gas in line 226 may flow into the gas box as venting gas for gas box 114, instead of flowing into the injector enclosure.

As can be seen from the foregoing, in the first example, the ventilation gas can be derived from various feeds, and the ventilation gas can also be effectively controlled to decrease as the amount of fluid remaining in the fluid supply container in the enclosure decreases, The ventilation gas requirement in the process facility can be minimized.

3 is a schematic front perspective view of a gas cabinet 400 that includes a plurality of adsorbent-based fluid supply vessels through which ventilation gases may pass.

The gas cabinet assembly 400 includes a gas cabinet 402. The gas cabinet 402 has side walls 404 and 406 forming a housing with front doors 414 and 420, a bottom 408, a rear wall 410 and a ceiling 411. The housing and each door enclose the interior space 412.

The door may, by its nature, be closed by itself or may be self-caught. For this purpose, the door 414 may have a latching element 418 that interactively engages the locking element 424 in the door 420. The doors 414, 420 may be obliquely cut and / or gaskets attached to create an airtight seal when the door is closed.

The doors 414 and 420 may be provided with windows 416 and 422, respectively. These windows may be wire reinforced and / or tempered glass to withstand breakage and at the same time have sufficient surface area so that the interior space 412 and the manifold 426 can be seen unimpeded.

As shown, the manifold 426 may be provided with an inlet connection line 430 which may be coupled to the gas supply vessel 433 in fluid communication with the gas supply vessel 433.

The manifold 426 may include, for example, a flow control valve, a mass flow controller, a process gas monitoring mechanism for monitoring process conditions (such as pressure, temperature, flow rate, concentration, etc.) An automatic purge mechanism for purging the internal space of the gas cabinet when a leak is detected in one or more supply vessels, and an associated actuator And may include suitable components, including,

The manifold 426 is connected to an outlet 428 in the wall 404 of the cabinet and the outlet 428 is connected to a piping for delivering the gas dispensed from the supply vessel to the downstream gas consumption unit associated with the gas cabinet. Lt; / RTI > The gas consuming unit may include, for example, an ion implanter, a chemical vapor deposition reactor, a photolithographic track, a diffusion chamber, a plasma generator, an oxidation chamber, and the like. The manifold 426 may be configured and installed to provide a predetermined flow rate of distribution gas from the supply vessel and the gas cabinet to the gas consuming unit.

The gas cabinet has a loop-mounted display 472 for monitoring the process of dispensing gas from the gas supply container (s) in the interior space of the cabinet, which display includes a manifold element in the interior space of the cabinet, Element.

The gas cabinet 402 is adapted to pass the ventilation gas through the ventilation gas inlet port 449 on the side wall of the cabinet and a supply line for introducing the ventilation gas into the cabinet can be connected to the cabinet by the port . In this way, the ventilation gas is introduced into the internal space of the gas cabinet, flows through the internal space, and is discharged to the roof-mounted discharge fan 474 and discharged from the cabinet.

In this configuration, the loop-mounted discharge fan 474 is connected by a coupling fitting 476 to a discharge conduit 478 for discharging gas from the interior space of the cabinet in the direction indicated by the arrow E. The exhaust fan 474 operates at an appropriate rotational speed to provide a predetermined vacuum or negative pressure to the interior space of the cabinet as another measure to prevent undesirable leakage of gas from the gas cabinet. Thus, the exhaust conduit may be connected to a downstream gas treatment unit (not shown), such as a scrubber or an extractor unit, for removing leakage gas from the effluent stream.

To supply inlet air for this purpose, the cabinet, e.g., the door, may be configured to cause a net inflow of ambient air as a sweep or purge stream to remove the interior space gas from the cabinet . Accordingly, the door may be formed in a different manner so that a ventilation window may be formed or a peripheral gas may be introduced, for example, a ventilation window that allows air to flow from the external environment of the gas cabinet into the internal space of the gas cabinet, And may have openings 300, 302.

The gas supply container 433 may suitably include a non-leaktight gas container, such as a cylindrical container, including a wall 432 surrounding the inner space of the container, for example. The inner space of the container contains a particulate solid adsorbent such as carbon, molecular sieve, silica, alumina and the like. The adsorbent may be of the kind having a high adsorption affinity and capacity for the gas to be dispensed.

In applications such as semiconductor fabrication where the reacted gas being dispensed is preferably ultra-high purity, e.g., "7-9's" purity, more preferably "9-9's" purity and even higher purity, The paper must be substantially absent and preferably essentially completely absent which causes decomposition of the gas stored in the vessel and also raises the vessel interior pressure to a level significantly above the desired set point storage pressure.

For example, it is generally desirable to use adsorbent-based storage and dispensing vessels to maintain the stored gas at a pressure that does not exceed about atmospheric pressure, such as in the range of about 25 to about 800 torr. These atmospheric or subatmospheric pressure levels provide a high level of safety and reliability.

For the task of dispensing such high purity gas in the sorbent-based storage and dispensing vessel (s), each such supply vessel undergoes appropriate preparation, such as bake-out and / or purging, It is desirable to ensure that there is no contaminant in the vessel itself that could adversely affect the gas distribution operation at the next use of the adsorber-based storage and distribution system. In addition, the adsorbent itself may be subjected to a suitable preparation operation (such as pretreatment to desorb all alien species from the adsorbent) before being placed in the supply vessel, or alternatively may be subjected to bakeout and / or purging after the adsorbent is charged to the vessel .

3, the supply container 433 is an elongated, vertically oriented form having a lower end and an upper neck 436 located at the bottom 408 of the cabinet, The valve head 438 is fixed. The supply vessel 433 is filled with the adsorbent and thereafter either before or after the adsorption gas is deposited on the adsorbent by the valve head 438, for example by welding, brazing, soft soldering, compression joint fastening using suitable sealants, Can be secured to the container neck, so that the container will then have the property that the valve does not leak from the neck joint with the head.

The valve head 438 is provided with a coupling 442 for coupling the vessel to an appropriate conduit or other flow means that allows for the selective distribution of gas from the vessel. The valve head may be provided with a handwheel 439 for manually opening and closing the valve of the valve head to flow or terminate the gas flow into the connecting line. Alternatively, the valve head may be provided with an automatic valve actuator connected to an appropriate flow control means, so that the gas flow during the dispensing operation is maintained at a desired level.

In operation, a pressure differential is generated between the interior space of the supply vessel 433 and the external piping / flow circuit of the manifold, causing the gas to be desorbed from the adsorbent and into the gas flow manifold 426 from the vessel. Thus, a concentration driving force for mass transfer is generated, by which the gas is desorbed from the adsorbent and flows into the free gas space of the vessel, and the valve of the valve head is discharged out of the vessel while the valve is open.

Alternatively, the gas to be dispensed can be at least partially thermally desorbed from the adsorbent in the vessel 433. To this end, the bottom 408 of the cabinet may have an electrically-actuated resistive heating zone in which the vessel is placed, so that the electrical actuation of the resistive heating zone of the bottom causes heat to be transferred to the vessel and the adsorbent therein. As a result of this heating, the stored gas can be desorbed from the adsorbent in the vessel and subsequently distributed.

For this purpose, the container may alternatively be heated by the deployment of a heating jacket or heating blanket wrapping or enclosing the container casing, so that the container and its contents are properly heated to allow for the desorption of the stored gas, It happens.

As another approach, the desorption of gases stored in the vessel can be carried out under the impetus of both pressure differential and thermal desorption.

As another alternative, the supply vessel may be provided with a carrier gas inlet port (not shown), which may be connected to a carrier gas supply (not shown) inside or outside the cabinet. Such a gas supply part can provide a flow of a suitable gas, such as an inert gas or other gas, which is not harmful to the processing in the downstream gas consumption unit. In this way, a concentration gradient is created which causes the gas to flow through the vessel and desorb the adsorbed gas from the adsorbent in the vessel. Therefore, the carrier gas may be a gas such as nitrogen, argon, krypton, xenon, helium, and the like.

As shown in Fig. 3, the supply vessel 433 is held in position in the gas cabinet by means of strap fasteners 446, 448 of the usual kind. Other fasteners, such as a neck ring, may also be used, or they may be used to provide a recess or cavity in the bottom of the gas cabinet (to accommodate the lower end of the container therein), a guide member, Such as a compartment structure that holds the container stationary at the desired location within the chamber.

Although only one container 433 is shown in the gas cabinet in FIG. 3, it is shown that such a gas cabinet is constructed and installed to hold one, two, or three containers therein. In addition to container 433, optional second container 460 and optional third container 462 are shown in phantom in FIG. 3 and each strap fastener 464, 466 (optional container 460 ) And strap fasteners 468, 470 (for optional container 462).

As will be appreciated, the gas cabinet may be widely varied to accommodate one or more vessels therein. In this way, any number of gas supply vessels can be maintained in a single enclosure, thus providing enhanced safety and process reliability in connection with the use of conventional high pressure compressed gas cylinders.

In this way, a plurality of adsorbent containing gas supply vessels for supplying the various gas components required in the downstream gas consumption unit or providing a plurality of vessels each containing the same gas can be provided. The gases in the plurality of vessels in the gas cabinet may thus be the same or different from each other and each vessel may be operated simultaneously to draw gas to the vessels for the downstream gas consumption unit, Operate with automated valve / manifold actuation means to continuously open the containers to provide continuous operation or to accommodate process requirements of the downstream gas consumption unit.

The display 472 is programmably installed with associated computer / microprocessor means to provide visual output indicative of the status of the process operation, the amount the dispensed gas flows downstream, the time remaining, or the amount of gas for dispensing operations, can do. The display may provide output or other appropriate information suitable for operation, use and maintenance of the gas cabinet assembly, indicating the time or frequency of maintenance operations for the cabinet.

The display also includes audible alarm output means for indicating the conditions or process conditions useful for the need for replacement of the vessel in the gas cabinet, the occurrence of leaks, the end of the cycle or other work, the operation, use and maintenance of the gas cabinet .

Therefore, the gas cabinet assembly of the present invention can be widely varied in form and function to provide a flexible means for supplying the reaction gas (s) to a downstream gas consuming unit such as a processing unit in a semiconductor manufacturing facility You will know.

The gas cabinet apparatus shown in FIG. 3 is used in the manufacture of semiconductor materials and devices and other gas consumption processing operations, such as hydride gas, halide gas and, for example, silane, diborane, A gaseous organic metal including ammonia, hydrogen fluoride, hydrogen chloride, hydrogen antimonide, hydrogen sulfide, hydrogen selenide, hydrogen telluride, boron trifluoride, B ₂ F ₄ , tungsten hexafluoride, chlorine, hydrogen chloride, hydrogen bromide, hydrogen iodide, 5-group < / RTI >

By providing an economical and reliable supply of this gas (the gas is kept safe at relatively low pressure in the adsorbed state on the adsorbent and is easily distributed later to the point of use of the gas), the apparatus of FIG. 3 presents the risks associated with conventional high- Handling problems can be avoided.

In the apparatus of Figure 3, the venting gas flow through the gas cabinet is adjusted in accordance with the remaining amount of fluid in the fluid supply vessel, and therefore, as the fluid level in the fluid supply vessel gradually decreases until the vessel reaches the end of the dispensing process The ventilation gas flow rate is gradually reduced.

4 schematically depicts a fluid supply system 500 including a gas cabinet 502 containing a plurality of adsorbent based fluid supply containers 522, 524, 526, 528 and 530, 506, 508, 510 to provide sub-enclosures 512, 514, 516, 518, 520 for fluid supply vessels. The divided chambers are individually ventilated by the ventilation lines 594, 596, 598, 600, 602. Gas is dispensed from the vessel in the sub enclosure and distributed to the manifold line 592 that is connected to each vessel in each sub enclosure so that as each fluid supply vessel empties it closes the valve in the valve head assembly of the vessel properly The vessel closes the flow communication with the manifold and the subsequent vessel opens the flow communication with the manifold line 592.

Alternatively, if each vessel contains a different fluid, each vessel may have a separate distribution line instead of the common manifold line 592 shown in the figures.

The ventilation of each of the sub enclosures 512, 514, 516, 518 and 520 is carried out by the provision of ventilation gas supply sections 554 such as clean dry air (CDA), argon, helium, nitrogen, 562, 566 with flow control valves 560, 564, 568, 572, 576. The manifold is connected to a venting gas delivery line 556 to a panelizing gas manifold 552, , 570, 574). Each branch line 558, 562, 566, 570, 574 is in fluid communication with a corresponding sub-enclosure in each sub-enclosure 512, 514, 516, 518,

The flow control valves 560, 564, 568, 572 and 576 can be selectively adjusted to the controller 580 if desired and the controller can control each of the flow control valves 560, 564, 568, 572, And is coupled to such flow control valve. Although not shown, the controller 580 controls the flow rate of the fluid, the pressure of the fluid being dispensed, the weight of the fluid supply vessel (thus indirectly monitoring the fluid level), the desorption heat (from the physical adsorbent in the fluid supply vessel The temperature in the sub-enclosure, the cumulative volume of fluid dispensed or other operating conditions, equipment settings, time lapse, process parameters, or regulating ventilation gas flow in a particular sub-enclosure (s) of enclosure 502 And to the sensing element for monitoring other variables that provide the basis for the sensing element.

In general, regulating the ventilation gas flow in response to a dangerous level or a predetermined risk associated with the fluid in the fluid supply container may be based on any suitable relationship, ratio, parameter or interrelationship. Although disclosed herein relates to the description of embodiments in which the pressure or level of fluid in or out of the fluid supply container provides a basis for such control, the level of risk or the risk associated with the fluid in the fluid supply container may vary depending on the particular application Can be quantified or used in any appropriate manner in the field.

While the invention has been described herein with reference to specific aspects, features and illustrative embodiments of the invention, it is to be understood that the invention is not so limited and may be modified and changed without departing from the scope of the invention, It is to be understood that the invention is not limited to the disclosed embodiments, but, on the contrary, is intended to cover various modifications, alternatives, and alternatives according to the teachings of the present disclosure. Accordingly, the invention as claimed below is to be broadly construed and interpreted, including all such alterations, modifications, and alternative embodiments which fall within the spirit and scope thereof.

Claims (27)

A ventilation gas management system for an enclosure, the enclosure comprising a fluid supply container and a flow circuit connected to the fluid supply container and configured to flow ventilation gas through the enclosure,
A flow regulator to control the flow of ventilation gas through the enclosure;
(I) a fluid, enclosure, or fluid supply container in the fluid supply container or from a fluid supply container that affects the level of hazard or risk associated with fluid leakage from the fluid supply container or associated flow circuit within the enclosure And (ii) a monitoring assembly outputting a monitoring signal correlated with the monitored characteristic, wherein the characteristic comprises a fluid level of the fluid supply vessel; And
Receiving the monitoring signal from the monitoring assembly and responsive to the nature of the fluid level of the fluid supply vessel in relation to the level of hazards or hazards associated with fluid leakage from the fluid supply vessel within the enclosure, Wherein the ventilation gas flow through the enclosure continues to decrease as the fluid level decreases during dispensing of the fluid by reducing the flow of ventilation gas through the enclosure during dispensing of the fluid from the fluid supply vessel Said controller comprising:
Ventilation gas management system. delete delete The method according to claim 1,
Wherein the enclosure is configured to provide a respective sub-enclosure for each of the plurality of fluid supply vessels, wherein the ventilation gas management system manages the flow of ventilation gas through each sub-enclosure, Intended to
Ventilation gas management system, The method according to claim 1,
When operatively disposed with a gas box of an ion implanter in a semiconductor manufacturing facility, regulates the flow of ventilation gas through the gas box
Ventilation gas management system. 6. The method of claim 5,
The gas box comprises an adsorbent-based fluid supply vessel
Ventilation gas management system. delete delete delete delete A method for supplying a gas from a fluid supply in an enclosure through which a ventilation gas flows,
Providing a gas management system according to claim < RTI ID = 0.0 > 1, <
Monitoring the characteristics of a fluid, enclosure, or fluid supply that is dispensed within or from the fluid supply that affects the level of hazard or risk associated with fluid leakage from the fluid supply or associated flow circuit within the enclosure;
In response to the monitoring, venting through the enclosure based on a remaining amount of fluid in the fluid supply during distribution of the fluid from the fluid supply in relation to a level of hazard or danger associated with fluid leakage from the fluid supply within the enclosure Controlling the flow of the gas
Gas supply method. delete delete 12. The method of claim 11,
Wherein the adjusting comprises adjusting a flow control device selected from the group consisting of a flow control valve, a damper, variable-size restricted flow orifice devices, a mass flow controller, a variable speed pump and a variable speed blower ≪ / RTI >
Gas supply method. 12. The method of claim 11,
Wherein the adjusting comprises obtaining data from a data collection module disposed outside the enclosure and operatively connected to at least one sensor in the enclosure for monitoring
Gas supply method. 12. The method of claim 11,
Wherein the adjusting step reduces the flow of venting gas through the enclosure when dispensing fluid from the fluid supply under non-alarm conditions and the closing feature of the accessory structure of the enclosure, and further comprising controlling the fluid supply, the flow circuit, the enclosure and / An alarm condition associated with the process of consuming the fluid is generated, or when the access structure of the enclosure is opened, the flow of ventilation gas through the enclosure is increased
Gas supply method. 12. The method of claim 11,
The adjusting step reduces the flow of ventilation gas through the enclosure during distribution of the fluid from the fluid supply, such that the ventilation gas flow through the enclosure is progressively reduced as the fluid level decreases during dispensing of the fluid
Gas supply method. delete delete delete delete delete delete delete delete delete delete

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